When a Wal-Mart employee, Karen Armatrout, died in 1997, Wal-Mart collected thousands of dollars on a life insurance policy the retail giant had taken out without telling her, according to a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court. Armatrout was one of about 350,000 employees Wal-Mart secretly insured nationwide, said Texas attorney Michael D. Myers, who estimated the company collected on 75 to 100 policies involving Florida employees who died.
source: Tampa Tribune
| Back in December, I posted what has become my most famous blog. The revelation of the existance of the Gulf of Sherman. And it is the Gulf of Sherman, not the Gulf of Texoma like some people have been thought. The Gulf of Texoma is north of us. That is something I have found. The place where everyone goes to think they are big shots. No the Gulf of Sherman is the elusive port to the south of our area. The area which is notorious for refueling hurricanes and departure areas for 4-story tall cruise ships. The one thing Wal-mart managers are afraid of. That is the Gulf of Sherman. I have kept my search going for this elusive body of water. And I think I have discovered one of the largest cover-ups since the Roswell crash. Yesterday, Melissa and I were headed out of Whitesboro towards Gainesville. That is where I found my largest clue.... |
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As we rounded the corner of Highway 56, at the intersection of Highway 82, there it was!!! |
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By the time I got my camera and got back, the traffic had pushed most of this out of the way, but it was clear! I quickly recognized the substance covering the road. |
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There was no doubt! I had come across the largest clue in what had to be the biggest burial of truth since the Kennedy assassination. Yes, just like the magic bullet, what seems to be impossible had to be true! The evidence was right there in the middle of the road! |
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The truth is simple. They know I know! They know I have been looking, asking questions! They knew I was getting close! So, in order to not have to admit defeat, Texoma joined forces with Wal-Mart! While I was working this last weekend, I noticed many Wal-Mart associates and managers running around in plain clothes, undercover.... They thought I would fall for the whole "Oh, we are doing an Earth Day Project." Like I would fall for the whole, "Yes, these four dying trees we are going to plant will save the world!" speel they delivered. Come on! The polar ice caps are melting! For the first time in history, there is a cruise line that is going from the Pacific to the Atlantic Ocean without going through the Panama Canal. They are going through the what used to be the ice cap at the North Pole. There is no way in hell four trees will save the world!!!! I am not falling for it. No, the truth is out and I know it! All these Wal-mart people were not saving the environment! They were moving the Gulf of Sherman! That is the truth. It is more believable than thinking Wal-mart is really trying to do something good, or that four trees that couldn't even sell on clearance prices will really do anything to save the environment. No, what is can be believed more is that Wal-mart and the officials in Texoma picked up and moved the Gulf of Sherman to hide it again, and during it's moving, some of it fell off the truck, just outside of Whitesboro. Smooth thinking, but I haven't given up. If nothing else, this has reignited the fires within me, and the search is back on. Yes, oh yes, I will find this exclusive place, or I will move away without even trying! |
Things Got Ya Down?
Well Then, Consider These . . .
.............................
In a hospital's Intensive Care Unit, patients always died
in the same bed, on Sunday morning, at about 11:00 am,
regardless of their medical condition.
This puzzled the doctors and some even thought it had
something to do with the supernatural. No one could solve
the mystery as to why the deaths occurred around 11:00 am
Sunday, so a worldwide team of experts was assembled to
investigate the cause of the incidents.
The next Sunday morning, a few minutes before 11:00 am,
all of the doctors and nurses nervously waited outside
the ward to see for themselves what the terrible phenomenon
was all about. Some were holding wooden crosses, prayer
books, and other holy objects to ward off the evil spirits.
Just when the clock struck 11:00, Pookie Johnson, the part-
time Sunday sweeper, entered the ward and unplugged the life
support system so he could use the vacuum cleaner.
Still Having a Bad Day????
.............................
The average cost of rehabilitating a seal after the
Exxon Valdez Oil spill in Alaska was $80,000.00.
At a special ceremony, two of the most expensively
saved animals were being released back into the wild
amid cheers and applause from onlookers.
A minute later, in full view, a killer whale ate them both.
Still think you are having a Bad Day????
.............................
A woman came home to fin d her husband in the kitchen
shaking frantically, almost in a dancing frenzy,
with some kind of wire running from his waist towards
the electric kettle. Intending to jolt him away from
the deadly c urrent, she whacked him with a handy
plank of wood, breaking his arm in two places.
Up to that moment, he had been happily listening
to his Walkman.
Are Ya OK Now? - No?
.............................
Two animal rights defenders were protesting
the cruelty of sending pigs to a slaughterhouse
in Bonn, Germany. Suddenly, all two thousand pigs
broke loose and escaped through a broken fence,
stampeding madly.
The two helpless protesters were trampled to death.
What?? STILL having a Bad Day????
............................
Iraqi terrorist Khay Rahnajet didn't pay enough postage
on a letter bomb. It came back with 'Return to Sender'
stamped on it.
Forgetting it was the bomb, he opened it and was
blown to bits.
There now, Feeling Better! 
Yolanda Adams, Entertainer, Grammy winnerFavorite places to eat?
Houston has the best people, restaurants and entertainment around. Trust me, I've been everywhere and still would live in no other city but Houston. I Love You, Houston!
Leven Rambin, Actress, All My Children
Beyonce Knowles, Entertainer
Haylie Duff, Entertainer
Hilary Duff, Entertainer
George Foreman, Boxer, Olympic Gold Medalist, Entertainer
A.J. Foyt, Auto Racing LegendWASHINGTON - The world's beaches and shores are anything but pristine. Volunteers scoured 33,000 miles of shoreline worldwide and found 6 million pounds of debris from cigarette butts and food wrappers to abandoned fishing lines and plastic bags that threaten seabirds and marine mammals. A report by the Ocean Conservancy, to be released Wednesday, catalogues nearly 7.2 million items that were collected by volunteers on a single day last September as they combed beaches and rocky shorelines in 76 countries from Bahrain to Bangladesh and in 45 states from southern California to the rocky coast of Maine.
"This is a snapshot of one day, one moment in time, but it serves as a powerful reminder of our carelessness and how our disparate and random actions actually have a collective and global impact," Vikki Spruill, president of the Ocean Conservancy said in an interview.
The 378,000 volunteers on average collected 182 pounds of trash for every mile of shoreline, both ocean coastlines and beaches on inland lakes and streams, providing a "global snapshot of the ocean trash problem."
The most extensive cleanup was in the United States where 190,000 volunteers covered 10,110 miles — about a third of the worldwide total — and picked up 3.9 million pounds of debris on a single Saturday last September, according to the report.
That's 390 pounds of trash per mile, among the highest rates of any country, although the high number also reflects the large number of U.S. volunteers who took part, said Spruill. By comparison, volunteers in neighboring Canada collected 74 pounds per mile and those in Mexico, 157 pounds per mile, said the report. About 65 pounds of trash were collected per mile in China and 46 pounds per mile in New Zealand. Volunteers covered one mile in Bahrain and found 300 pounds of trash.
But Spruill said the volume of trash collected tells only part of the story. It's the items that are found that tells us about the behavior of people enjoying the beaches and coastlines of the world.
"It represents a general carelessness we have. ... We're the bad guys. Trash doesn't fall from the sky. It actually falls from our hands," said Spruill.
The debris ranges from the relatively harmless, although annoying and an eyesore, to items that annually result in the death of hundreds of thousands of seabirds and marine mammals caught in abandoned fishing lines and netting.
A third of the items found came from smokers.
The volunteers collected and cataloged nearly 2.3 million cigarette butts, filters and cigar tips. And they found 587,827 bags; more than 1.7 million food wrappers, containers, lids, cups, plates and eating utensils; and nearly 1.2 million bottles and beverage cans.
Divers also scoured waters offshore, collecting about 160,000 pounds of debris from cigarette waste and food containers to more threatening items: abandoned fishing lines, plastic bags, rope, fishing nets and abandoned crab and lobster traps.
The International Coastal Cleanup also focused attention on the damage these items can do, said program sponsors.
The volunteers came across 81 birds, 63 fish, 49 invertebrates, 30 mammals and 11 reptiles and one amphibian that all had become entangled in various debris, most often discarded fishing line, rope or plastic bags, according to the report.
Among other items that entangle animals and birds were balloon ribbons and strings, building material, vehicle tires, wire, and beverage six-pack holders.
In all, 57 percent of the trash was related to shoreline recreational activities, 33 percent from smoking-related activities, 6.3 percent from fishing or waterway activities, 2 percent from dumping and less than 1 percent from medical and personal hygiene activities, said the report.
On the island of Ambergris Caye, the beachfront Exotic Caye Beach Resort is located approximately half a mile south of the San Pedro airstrip. This property is 31 miles from Belize City in San Pedro, Ambergris Caye. Guests fly internationally into Belize City and must schedule a short flight to San Pedro, Ambergris Caye.
Wal-Mart's dirty laundry is getting more global exposure today just a week after the Debbie Shank story. It has not been a good month for Wal-Mart public relations. To use a sports term, these are turnovers, and they expose the weaknesses of Wal-Mart's high priced image.
Undeniably, over the past three years Wal-Mart has gotten better at hiding the truth from us and from the media usually by obfuscating rather than clarifying the real issues. Their so-called health care reform is just one example. And thanks to the millions they are spending on Edelman Public Relations, they have received some good coverage in the media.
Occasionally though, they fumble the ball and we get to see clearly what is behind the façade. The video of Wal-Mart managers dressed in drag aired on NBC Nightly News last night (April 9, 2008) is a great example.
From Dukes v. Wal-Mart, the largest class-action employment discrimination case in American history, we know that at Wal-Mart, women make up only 37% of Assistant Managers, 21% of Co-Managers, and 15% of Store Managers. In 2001, those women who did become salaried Wal-Mart managers earned about $14,500 less than men per year. So it is no surprise that a gathering of Wal-Mart managers would be rife with sexist undertones.
Wal-Mart might suggest that the performances featured in the footage from this 1995 meeting intended to be funny, but either they value women or they do not and discriminating against women is no joking matter.
http://action.walmartwatch.com/DoAsWeSay
Debbie Shank is another good example of why public relations is not enough to fix Wal-Mart's fundamental problems. Every day Wal-Mart refuses to put enough money forward to adequately fund their employees health care, and associates pay the price. Obviously Debbie Shank is a particularly tragic story but if you talk to Wal-Mart employees, as we do every day, you realize that there are many sad stories of people who have not received the medical care they need because the plan that they can afford from Wal-Mart provides minimalist coverage and the better plans are just too expensive.
Wal-Mart change to its business practices is in the best interest of its employees, its customers, its bottom line and our country. Wal-Mart has pushed back suggesting that our critiques are at best unnecessary and at worst unfair. The videos and the Debbie Shank story have exposed that the leadership of Wal-Mart allows and even encourages a corporate culture of negligence and discrimination. It is not in anyone's best interests for such a culture to continue. Wal-Mart needs to change.
source: The Huffington Post
Most experts will identify the term "white trash" as a derogatory appelation. Like most such terminology, it is therefore only okay when one happens to be white trash as well. Thus, recognizing oneself as white trash is the first step toward safely utilizing the term when describing others.
1: Am I White Trash? The list below is indicative of the typical characteristics of white trash. The more you personally answer "yes" to, the more likely it is you qualify.
-- Are you caucasian? (Required)
-- Do you follow NASCAR? How about monster truck rallies?
-- When the World Wrestling Federation changed their name to World Wrestling Entertainment, did you have to get a tattoo altered?
-- Just in general, do you have more than three tattoos?
-- Does your home have wheels under it?
-- Do you only dance when the steps are either prearranged (i.e., the Chicken Dance, the Electric Slide) or are shouted out to you in advance? (i.e., square dancing.)
-- Do you enjoy hunting? If yes, do you feel that fully automatic weaponry is absolutely required when planning an assault on deer?
-- Stand at the edge of your property and turn around slowly. While turning, did you at any point see a cornfield?
-- When you pronounce the word "nuclear" does an extra "U" end up in between the "C" and the "L"?
-- When attending football games, do you apply paint to any part of your body?
-- Do you regard anything not recorded in Nashville with extreme disdain?
-- Did you just have to look up the word 'disdain'?
-- Does improving the reception on your television set involve tin foil?
-- Did you not feel any need to attend college because you figured you learned plenty in high school?
-- Is 'evolution' a swear word in your home?
From the tough anti-union talk to the wilder side of men in drag, videos of Wal-Mart corporate meetings are being sold to willing buyers, and the corporate behemoth is not happy about it.
The videos, thousands of them spanning three decades, are in the library of a production company in Lenexa, Kan. Flagler Productions Inc. was hired on a handshake deal by Wal-Mart in the 1970s to produce and film corporate sales meetings and other company events.
After receiving a verbal commitment that Flagler would be used for meetings in the future, Wal-Mart abruptly ended its deal with Flagler in 2006 causing the company to lay off most of their employees, according to Flagler. Representatives from Wal-Mart tried to buy the library in 2007, but Flagler and Wal-Mart could not agree on a price so the sale never happened.
Now, Flagler is offering the tapes to anyone else who might be interested, including the media and plaintiffs’ attorneys.
Wal-Mart is currently defending itself in a lawsuit that claims widespread sex discrimination regarding issues of salary and promotional opportunities on behalf of at least 1.6 million female employees.
The attorney representing the female employees, Joe Sellers, says that some videos show the company acknowledged there was a lack of women in management back in the late 1980s.
"There’s no question these videos capture in a fairly candid way the sentiment of top executives many years ago," Sellers said. "This is not new, and it is not something that top management was unaware of."
Indeed, in one video obtained by ABCNews.com, Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton addresses the issue at a shareholders meeting in 1987. "We know we haven’t gotten as far as we’d like to be advancing women in our company. But we’re very conscious of it," he says. [Watch video.]
Wal-Mart released this statement to ABCNews.com today. "Needless to say, we did not pay Flagler Productions to tape internal meetings with this aftermarket in mind. It’s definitely an unusual business model on their end, and we can’t imagine too many other clients will be eager to pay for this service."
Wal-Mart has also stated previously that it is confident it did not discriminate against female employees.
Wal-Mart said the act was just for fun. "Over the years these internal meetings included a wide range of messages and activity -- some practical, some inspirational and some just plain silly. Clearly this video falls in the silly category, but having fun is just part of running a business," said a company spokesperson.
In January, ABCNews.com reported on videos dating back to when Hillary Clinton was on the board of directors at Wal-Mart. In her six years on the board, Clinton remained silent as the world’s largest retailer waged a major campaign against labor unions seeking to represent store workers.
Wal-Mart’s anti-union efforts were headed by one of Clinton’s fellow board members, John Tate, a Wal-Mart executive vice president who also served on the board with Clinton for four of her six years.
Tate was fond of repeating, as he did at a managers’ meeting in 2004 after his retirement, what he said was his favorite phrase, "Labor unions are nothing but bloodsucking parasites living off the productive labor of people who work for a living." [Watch video.]
Wal-Mart says Tate’s comments "were his own and do not reflect Wal-Mart’s views."
The Clinton campaign has since stated, "As president, she will fight alongside labor to promote the economic growth of America’s middle class," and that Clinton strongly believes that Wal-Mart employees should be allowed to unionize.
source: ABC News
Clemson woman allegedly acts out during Wal-Mart termination process
ANDERSON — A Clemson woman is facing charges of going "postal" at Wal-Mart in Anderson, causing $2,800 in damage when store managers terminated her from her job in the store’s delicatessen.
Shanay Buie allegedly became upset about 3:30 p.m. Friday at 3812 Liberty Hwy.
"She returned to the deli and threw 2 chickens at 2 customers," according to the incident report. "At that time, she also threw on the ground 2 printers worth about $1,000 each. She also threw to the ground 2 sets of dishes worth about $400 a set."
An arrest has not been made, according to records at the Anderson City Jail.
Wal-Mart Drops Claim
Wal-Mart Stores is dropping a controversial effort to collect more than $400,000 in health-care reimbursement from a former employee who has been in a Missouri nursing home since she suffered brain damage in a traffic accident.
The retailer said in a letter to the family of Deborah Shank it will not seek to collect money the Shanks won in a lawsuit against a trucking company for the accident. Wal-Mart has been roundly criticized for its claim.
Pat Curran, executive vice president for human resources at Wal-Mart Stores U.S., wrote that Shank’s extraordinary situation had made the company reexamine its stance.
